


Hybrid Theory

by FandomDojo



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F, Grimm!Yang Au, dark yang xiao long
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:02:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26617876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FandomDojo/pseuds/FandomDojo
Summary: During a mission to retrieve the relic of knowledge, a problem occurs and Yang is left behind in the lands of Grimm to suffer a dreadful fate at the hands of their enemy. Forced to become something sinister and horrific. A new type of monstrosity under Salem’s control. She is tasked to be a faithful follower of the evil queen but can Yang break away from her Grimm clutches?
Comments: 7
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

Things were… tense after their defeat in Atlas.

Oscar was missing, Qrow arrested, the relic gone, Salem looming over their heads and just around the corner. It was no doubt a situation that would lead to negative feelings surfacing at very inconvenient times.

Arguments became frequent, almost every conversation had ended abruptly due to someone stepping in to put a stop to it. The attraction to Grimm was continuous due to them camping just outside Atlas now that they were outlaws, as declared by general Ironwood. Team JN_R was on their lowest spirits, losing the Relic they all worked hard to preserve alongside losing Oscar, their only source of information on their enemy as well as said enemy's intentions and pursuits. It had brought back some painful memories of their fallen teammate. Team RWBY was not in the best of conditions either.

Weiss's worry for her sister's well-being had not subsided even when Winter had stated that she was not to be any of Weiss's concern. Ruby was almost always pacing around camp, lost in thought. Coming up with plans briefly before tossing them out, either not well received from her friends or not being very well thought out. Blake had surprisingly become the team's soother, acting the calmest in her usually level-headed leader's place while Yang… did not even bother hiding her displeasure at the situation.

It was to be expected. Yang was never on board with following Ozpin in his impossible quest, even less pleased when they found out that he does not even have a plan for them to follow in the first place. Yang usually sat away from the group, content to stew in her anger rather than participate in any interaction and accidentally lash out, even she was tired from the mobs of Grimm plaguing their camp so the best way to avoid it was sulk alone until she felt better.

But she didn't feel better, in fact, she felt worse as days went by. The relic was gone, no doubt had already fallen into Salem's clutches by now, what were they to do? Ruby had once suggested that they take it back, a suicide mission as called by the entire camp present. Yang stayed quiet as the teams voiced their concerns, biting her tongue to keep any cold words to be directed at her sister but in the end, the dark thoughts had slipped out.

"And then what? Lose it again? Collect the rest of the relics so it's easy for Salem to show up and snatch those as well?"

Ruby had visibly deflated at the rejection; it was the best plan she had so far. In her mind, the best step to take was to simply keep the power away from Salem until they could come up with a solid plan. Or to keep Salem from using its power and wasting the last question the lamp could answer. After all, they could use the help and unlike Salem, they weren't going to be around in a hundred years.

After much consideration, everyone was much more accepting of the plan, it was better to do that than wait for Salem to make her move against them first, after all. Even though they didn't have Qrow to help them out, especially to scout, they had to rely on themselves. Or so they thought.

Qrow had been arrested, that much they knew. He and Robyn Hill were seen being escorted to a containing airship, handcuffed with haunted looks on their faces. There wasn't much they could do for Qrow at the time and they trusted him to be able to get out of that mess by himself. What they didn't expect though, was for him to step out of a red swirling portal in the middle of their camp two weeks later. His expression ashen and miserable. Yang and Weiss recognized the portal immediately, they had stepped into a similar one themselves once.

No one asked him why or how he had gotten into contact with Raven, not even Yang. Not even to ask how he had just convinced her to help him out, he and Raven were no longer on speaking terms ever since the fall of haven where she sided with the enemy. Yang had met his gaze with her own, a dark expression on her face before turning away. They had a suicide mission to prepare for.

Their plan was simple, luck was a major factor in it but wasn't it always? Team JN_R, Penny, and Maria would cause a distraction at the front of Salem's domain, drawing the attention of her forces while Team RWBY and Qrow snuck in and retrieved the relic, once they were all safe inside the airship they'd stolen, they'll pull back and retreat. It sounded simple enough in words. In action, however, it was a different story.

They were prepared to face a significant amount of Grimm; this was where they were created after all but none of them actually expected it to be crawling with the creatures as it is. Looking down at the ground below them, Ruby unconsciously tightened her hold on Crescent Rose, her eyebrows crinkling in concern. A hand touched her shoulder and made her jump in surprise, turning to face neutral purple eyes, a welcome change from the angry red she got used to seeing. "It's time to go." Was all Yang had said, emotionless. Jaune thought it would be best to mask everyone's emotions before the mission began and it had proved to be very useful while they snuck into the Grimm infested land.

Maria had found a spot close enough to the giant castle, where they could sneak down and in without drawing much attention. Despite having no idea on how to enter the giant building, Qrow had found a window where he could sneak in using his bird form and the rest would then be up to him, RWBY would guard the entrance they found until he came back, and then they would go back as a group to rejoin the others, according to the plan.

Unfortunately, Salem was not about to entertain such a plot. Salem was capable of attacking Atlas the very moment she arrived there, but she didn't. Apparently, the retrieval of the relic was enough for her to leave her flying army of Grimm surrounding Atlas in a show of power while she left to her palace to rejoice and seek its knowledge. Thus, she would not allow the lamp to be taken away under any circumstance.

Qrow's entry didn't mean team RWBY's mission was to loiter around in his absence and to wait for him to come back, it was to fend off the enemies that came out to fight them minutes later, jumping off the windows above them and instantly engaging in a fight with the girls below. Three thuds surrounded the team as they readied their weapons while a flying Cinder smiled down menacingly. Emerald and Mercury cocked their weapons, firing round after round of bullets while Hazel instantly charged head-on.

For once, Yang's eyes didn't instantly turn red in rage at seeing the two people who had been responsible for the deceit that publicly humiliated and disgraced her in front of millions of people but instead she kept her gaze locked onto the tank of a man who had been meaning to run into Weiss and Blake, taking them out of the way in a single attack. Her teammates understood and started firing rounds of their own at the remaining three. Cinder didn't attempt to attack as quickly as her companions, rather content in watching them from above and looking for the perfect opportunity to strike. And soon enough, it did come.

Her golden eyes filled with a thrill as little Red's back was turned, her weapon seeded in the ground as she targeted Mercury, his fast movements proving to be too overwhelming alongside Emerald's illusions. Summoning a bow that's gone unused for far too long, Cinder pulled its string. Three flaming arrows drew back before launching straight into Ruby's direction.

Ruby's attention had been frantically moving along the battle, she had wanted to help her teammates, but her nerves were on high alert knowing that Cinder was just above them, contemplating. She did not doubt that she was waiting for a moment's weakness from her as well as her team.

To her left, Blake and Weiss had gone on the defensive, blocking incoming bullets from Emerald's gun and Mercury's boots. Yang was not too far away, engaged in a fistfight with Hazel where both were trying to outmaneuver the other and drop them to the ground.

Ears straining, she heard a quick whizzing sound coming her way and Ruby's eyes widened in surprise, unable to move away in time. She flinched instinctively, eyes closing as if the action would offer some sort of protection or would lessen the blow. Just before the arrows landed on their target, Ruby felt herself being body slammed into the floor.

Silver eyes opened slowly, head pounding and ears ringing from the impact. Ruby blinked rapidly to rid of the floating white spots that filled her vision, slowly revealing a face twisted in pain above her own.

Ruby's eyes widened in shock, a feeling of dread immediately crawling up her spine and washing away all color from her face. Yang's face was twitching every few seconds and sweat trickled down the side of her face while her entire body shivered after a failed attempt at swallowing something filling her mouth.

"Y- Yang?" Ruby barely heard her own voice, a whisper overtaken by trembles.

Yang opened her mouth to reply and assure but as she did, a bile of blood dribbled down her chin and onto Ruby's rapidly growing horrified face. Yang mustered a smile and opened her eyes. Warm lavender met Ruby's glistening eyes and Ruby had grown aware of the huge bruise on the side of her sister's face. Her aura must've broken during her fight with Hazel.

The rapid beats of her heart momentarily jerked to a halt as she mindfully processed what that meant and a deep sinking fell to her stomach at the sight of an arrowhead poking out of the skin of Yang's throat.

"Hey… Don't worry." Yang's voice pulled her back to stare at Yang's gentle expression, still smiling, still reassuring. "I'll always look out for you, remember?" She said it like she always did, with unwavering honesty and a determination that Ruby could never doubt.

But at that moment, Yang's eyes grew heavy and dropped shut against her will, unaware of Ruby's horror rising at an alarming pace. Yang's body slumped forward and Ruby scrambled to catch her before her sister's face fell onto the ground. Her voice weakly stutters out a "Yang!" as her hand felt for the disintegrating arrows. "Hold on! Please, I- I'll call for Jaune, he can- he can help!" Yang's body was too heavy for Ruby to keep holding up, so she mustered all her strength to heft her to the side where she can keep her focus on her face in a vain attempt to keep Yang from slipping into unconsciousness. It didn't work. Yang's unsupported head just fell back as gravity pulled at it and Ruby's tears fell in streams. "No- No wait! Yang!"

There was no response to quell Ruby's wail.

Nearby, the scream pulled the attention of Weiss and Blake, their fights briefly forgotten as they stared at their fallen teammate being held by their leader. Ruby's eyes looked up at Cinder who only gave a self-satisfied smirk in return. It was never the maiden's intention to fatally wound the blonde, the blonde not even worthy of a single glance, no, her target was always Ruby Rose. But now she saw that by taking out the most important person to the silver-eyed brat and seeing her broken, defeated face, she had finally gotten her revenge.

Ruby sat on her knees, a crushed, haunted look on her face. Hazel didn't bother seeking out another opponent now that his former one had fallen, instead, he had reluctantly joined Cinder's lackeys in pushing at the rest of team RWBY. The situation was getting dire for the team, Qrow needed to hurry up or else this plan would fall to ruin.

As if summoned by thoughts, Qrow had crashed through the window he snuck in though, the lamp attached to his belt and weapon ready to be used in Scythe form. He hurriedly approached his nieces, shouting Ruby's name to catch her attention from afar. Ruby didn't respond, nor did she show any signs of hearing him.

Qrow jumped in front of the two and panted out that they needed to retreat, their goal was met, and the others were going to meet them at the location they were previously at. Ruby's shoulders shook and she felt herself slumping forward and grasping at Yang's now cold body. The unfamiliar feeling caused painful clenches in her chest, Yang was supposed to be warm, always burning brighter than anyone else.

"The airship is here and waiting, Ruby!" Qrow grunted loudly, his sight fixated on any approaching enemy. He tugged at her arm. "We need to leave!"

"We can't leave while she's-" Ruby tugged her arm away.

"We can't wait for help out here, Ruby! We're surrounded." Qrow dropped to his knee and grasped Ruby's face to keep her gaze fixed on him as he spoke. "We have the lamp and our ride is waiting, we can help Yang later, right now we need to get out of here."

"But-" Ruby jerked her face away.

"Get to the airship, your friends will be right behind you. I'll hold them off." He ordered.

Up above, a lone figure stood watching the fight with a passive expression, a deathly pale hand stroking underneath the jaw of a freakish looking Grimm. The Grimm were not pleasant to look at in normal circumstances but a Grimm that had parts that did not belong to its kind was deeply unsettling. Land dwelling Grimm looked like the animals that lived on the land, Airborne Grimm had wings and were capable of flight just like the creatures that soared the skies. To mix these two aspects would only result in a mighty beast.

The person in question did not pay any mind to the two frantic men that entered the room behind her. She knew they had failed her yet again. The infiltrator took her precious relic. Tyrian and Watts took a moment to appear composed in front of their lady, but a hand raised to halt them.

"Release all of the Grimm."

Watts and Tyrian shared a look, they knew what sort of monsters Salem had been creating in preparation to overtake Remnant. Now that they had come back with most of their forces unharmed and not allowed to fight and feast, the creatures grew hungry and more ferocious than ever.

A nod was the answer Salem received and the men were off once again.

Ruby reluctantly pulled away to retrieve Crescent Rose, which was a few feet away, tucking it into its portable function and away in its holder. She reached down and clutched Yang's body underneath her armpits, planning to drag her back all the way, even if it meant she would be left behind on her own. The battle around her quieted down, Weiss and Blake were ordered to retreat and had hastened to follow orders. Qrow stood still, petrified as their enemies suddenly retreated as well and, in their place, a large swarm of terrifying Grimm emerged from the depths of Salem's castle.

"Oh no…" Was all Ruby heard before she was shoved away from Yang, letting the older man have enough space to throw Yang over his shoulder and start running towards the airship with Ruby on his heels. Maria had forgone subtlety and was speeding towards them, they figured out that she would be doing a 180 to instantly fly away once they were on board, so they'd have to jump in order to get on the vehicle.

Ruby had no issues using her semblance to hop on board but her teammates grabbed her arms anyway to stabilize her so she wouldn't fall back out, Qrow on the other hand had a lot of trouble jumping along with Yang's added weight. But even with Ren and Jaune's immediate help, they were not fast enough to grab Yang when she slipped due to Cinder's sneak attack. Apparently, the satisfaction from before had not been enough for the maiden flying behind the airship.

Ruby jerked out of Weiss and Blake's arms to reach for her sister's unconscious body as it plunged to the Grimm plagued land. Her scream pierced through the roars of the black ashen creatures but did nothing to move them away nor did the light of her silver eyes manage to reach the creatures waiting for the body to fall into their claws and jaws. The scream continued until all that was heard were the faint echoes in the distance.

Yang's limp body laid in the middle of a Grimm herd, still and unmoving, her prosthetic was shattered, bits and pieces exploding from it upon ground impact. Her eyes closed and mouth parted as she struggled to breathe with whatever strength she had left, it was only dwindling. A shadow covered her face, it was dark out in the land of Grimm, but it still felt like a blinding light was being shone on her face. The shadow provided a short, temporary relief from the harsh surroundings.

There was shuffling, footsteps and thuds all around. Distracting from the dreary feeling of death in the surroundings, not that it was obvious to Yang. Her short period of awareness slipping away moments after a chilling voice had spoken. "Bring the child, Hazel."

So, this is how it feels when you are bent and broken, Yang's mind asked. This is how it feels when your dignity's stolen? She was carried away on the large man's shoulder like a sack and then dropped on the ground. Hazel didn't drop her harshly, but her body hurt everywhere, and it felt like she's been dropped off the initiation cliff. There was a brief soothing coolness that spread over her body, it didn't last long, and Yang instantly missed the numbness that it offered before her awareness slipped away, yet again.

Salem looked down at the limp body, not in anger, not in disgust and never in sympathy, regardless she pulled her magic surrounded hand away and gestured to Hazel to do as told, which he did. Cinder and her posse had followed behind and been there to witness the blonde being kicked off the cliff overlooking the pools of Grimm where Salem likes to lurk in her spare time.

Upon entering the pools of Grimm, Yang felt an immediate suffocating substance entering her lungs, instinctively she would have held her breath, but Yang was too tired to do that much less try and move her arms and legs in an attempt to save herself. This was not water she was in, it didn't move like water against her, she didn't feel it trying to fill every space to suffocate her. No, it closed around her, enveloping her in darkness and forcing a deep sense of dread into her.

The cool sensation that washed over her minutes before she broke the surface had been completely washed away, a desperate hot wave coming over her and stinging her skin. Yang did not thrash, she couldn't. Her heartbeat was beating rapidly in panic, the urgency for air was starting to take its toll. Yang didn't know if her eyes were open or closed but there were no splotches of light in sight, no blotches of red and white floating in her vision anymore, it was all black.

She opened her mouth to gasp for air and the darkness consumed her instead.


	2. Chapter 2

Time passed, no one was certain how long, too afraid to show impatience in Salem's presence. No one really understood why Salem had specifically chosen the girl to be thrown off the cliff but neither cared to ask and risk unnecessary anger in their direction, there were never any true signs of time passage in the Grimm domain either.

A slight shift in Salem's attitude alerted everyone that something was about to happen, and their attention caught on the dark figure moving beneath the slimy surface. A hand, pale as a sheet emerged and gripped the edge of the lake. Emerald and Mercury showed obvious signs of distress at the sight, wide eyes and breaths caught in their throats, which Hazel noticed and proceeded to put his hands on both of their shoulders. Cinder did not bother glancing in their direction, too fixated at the sight of a second hand emerging soon after.

Cinder knew the girl had lost an arm, the sight of the new deathly dark hand filling her own with a strange tingly feeling that made her flex her fingers to rid of it.

The rest of the body took a while to emerge as if the person hidden away was preparing themselves for a dive and enjoying the last few seconds of air they had rather than the opposite. Once golden silky and wild hair, now a pale comparison with what it had become, the lack of pigmentation made it look almost ashen rather than a deathly pale white like Salem's.

Her bangs covered yang's face, and Salem's body obscured the rest of her. A hand was laid gently upon Yang's head, and the girl raised her head to look up at the gesture. Her hands were clutched in the dirt below, bracketed by her knees. Heavy breaths escaped her mouth and shook her chest, but her eyes remained closed.

"Rise, my creation."

It was said very quietly, almost gently. Almost. It was enough for Yang's ears to strain and instinctively open her eyes at the command. Red eyes like the Grimm were revealed upon the lid's opening, the whites of her eyes gone and replaced with a menacing black that enveloped her irises. Yang's vision was hazy and blurred, the surroundings felt sinister and destructive, so much that Yang's head started getting lightheaded and heavy once again.

"You may rest, child. You'll need your strength." Soothing strokes to her hair accompanied the voice, and Yang obeyed once again.

When yang awoke next, fully conscious and aware, she was in a bed. Head laid on a soft pillow and body covered with a thin blanket. Her skin was heated and clammy, she could feel a drop of sweat running down the side of her neck and onto the sheets beneath her.

She felt heavy, like a sleep paralysis locking her body in place. Yang managed to jerk her head to the side and free her body from its mental constraints. Her hands shook and she slowly attempted to raise one to rub at her face only to pause midway through when a chilling realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

Yang was not a stranger to accidentally reach for things with her right arm, it was her dominant hand after all. But all those times she would come to the realization that her arm was not there and the remaining nub at her side would stay in the air, outstretched and frozen for a few seconds before Yang realized her mistake. This time, however, her arm was there just a few inches from her face.

Yet it wasn't her arm. It was a horrifying and repulsive-looking arm. Deep black like the Grimm with short yet sharp white fingernails that could better be described as trimmed claws.

She blinked once before sitting up in a panic.

The first thing she noticed was that she was stripped down to her underwear, Yang's first instinct was to glower in anger that someone had dared lay their hand on her until she noticed the pile of ruined clothes on a dresser somewhere deeper in the room, a fresh stack of clothes neatly folded next to them. Her body was damp with a mixture of sweat and a weird dark fluid that oozed of her skin, mainly around her new right arm.

Heart beating in her chest, Yang scrambled off the bed, head running wild on distressing thoughts. She dressed immediately in the fresh clothes placed for her after examining her huntress outfit and deeming it not wearable anymore, one of the bodysuit buckles had snapped and the cloth was stained black and it simply looked unpleasant to look at much less wear. Her jacket suffered quite the beating though, the right sleeve was completely ripped, and the soft white fur of a collar was now sticky and burnt.

Yang looked down at herself, the clothes provided were newly cleaned. It wasn't anything fancy, just a grey tracksuit jacket and sweatpants that fitted well against Yang's frame. It would have to do for now, as much as Yang was proud of her body, she was not willing to prance around in her underwear when she faced against whoever brought her here.

Now that she was decently covered, Yang discovered that she had no weapon to use at all. Her prosthetic gone -and obviously unusable- while the left part of Ember Celica was nowhere to be found. Yang cursed under her breath; she was in enemy territory with no way of defending herself.

She paced, angrily stomping and circling the room while her hands clenched and unclenched in frustration at having nothing to do with them other than simply be at her sides. Yang's breaths became rugged and shuddery as she felt a familiar spark igniting in her head, her semblance was activating, and she didn't have anything to use it on but luckily, she didn't have to.

The door opened wide a moment later and Yang's stopped in her tracks, a gaping expression struck her face at the intrusion.

Yang's face went through a series of different emotions all at once, starting with a shock that instantly turned to fear before briefly passing through the confusion and finally settling on anger. This woman was the reason for all their suffering, the reason remnant was plagued with living nightmares and unspoken horrors, the reason her mother and friend had fallen. The reason why Ruby could no longer sleep without occurring nightmares every night. And she was standing right here in front of her.

Desaturated hair immediately caught fire as bare feet rushed at the figure. Yang's newly grown arm pulled back and preparing to launch a punch at the calm woman standing at the door. Yang didn't even get within 6 feet of her visitor before being launched back to the wall at the opposite side of the room just from a nonchalant flick of Salem's wrist.

Yang grunted but didn't allow the pain that seeped through her recovering aura to deter her and jumped to her feet to run at the woman once again. She was severely sluggish and slow compared to her usual combat capabilities. Her new arm's weight threw off her balance and she lacked the boost that she usually gave herself when heading into battle.

She was once again flung away.

She tried and tried and every time she was discarded, like a swatted fly.

Eventually, Salem's patience ran thin and a loud "Enough!" rang through the room and down the hallway. The voice momentarily stunned Yang and she wasn't prepared for the constraints that spawned from the ground to take hold of her body and force her to her knees.

Two pairs of red eyes met, and Yang tore her gaze away from the intensity, cursing at herself for showing weakness. She struggled against her restraints. but her efforts did nothing but cause her more discomfort when the slimy Grimm restraints tightened.

"Calm yourself, girl." Salem said in a more composed voice, though Yang could hear the tightness behind it. "You have been granted a chance like no other, I suggest you listen well and take it."

Yang didn't reply, nor did she raise her head to look at the woman who now stood before her.

"Your team left you." Yang's eyes widened and her body tensed at the words. "Just took off with their prize and didn't even bother taking you with them." Yang's teeth gritted at the tone.

"You're lying." She seethed angrily.

"What reason do I have to lie to you?" Salem questioned with a raised eyebrow and a hint of a smirk.

"What reason do you have to tell me the truth?" Yang bit back.

"Because you are more valuable than you think." Salem said with a smile as she tilted her down to meet Yang's eyes once again. "A shame that your so-called friends and family couldn't see that. I, however, see so much potential."

"I'm not listening to any of this." Yang growled. "Stay away from me."

"Oh?" Salem smiled. "You'd much rather hold on to your faith in people who abandoned you in the middle of the Grimm the moment they got their filthy hands on my precious relic?"

"They didn't leave me!" Yang yelled. "Stop saying that."

Salem paused and Yang hoped that she'd simply vanish and leave her be, her temper was starting to get the best of her. She wished she could shrug off all that was said and ignore it, yet she simply couldn't. Her thoughts wouldn't stop swirling with silent accusations.

"I see." Salem nodded. "I could leave you be if you wish." She said it lightly and Yang almost believed her. "But I have a question for you before I do so."

"What?" Yang spat quietly; her restraints were still as tight as they first took hold of her. So much for leaving her be.

"Why? Didn't they all leave you at some point? And they did so again." Salem questioned. "What makes you think they won't a third time or a fourth?" Yang's hands clenched into fists, she tried to desperately think of a quipping response but couldn't. Her silence was the answer Salem needed. A hand made its way to the top of Yang's head. "Stay here, with me." The finger's that wiggled into the desaturated locks of hair pulled to tilt the head back to reveal closed eyes, wet at the corners. "And I promise you, you will never feel that abandonment ever again."

"You're lying." Yang stated weakly, her throat felt tight with emotions. Her hands tightened into fists and she could feel the sharp nails digging into her palm, it was an odd sensation to feel her right arm again. "You're… You're lying."

"No." Salem spoke. "I'm the only one bothering to remain truthful."

Yang didn't reply. She knew Salem was lying, her friends wouldn't leave her like that. Ruby and Qrow wouldn't leave her like that…, right? But they did, a cold voice in the back of her mind said. Every single one of them left. Her partner selfishly chose to protect herself rather than stay and see if Yang was even alive after the fall of beacon. Dad shut down for the majority of her early years, forcing Yang to grow up and become an adult at the tender age of seven and to become a parental figure in his place. Raven never wanted her, and Yang always knew Summer would never love her like she loved Ruby. Qrow was never around much, to begin with, Yang never relied on him anyway but Ruby… Ruby chose to leave her the only time she truly needed her.

But Ruby had to, she tried to argue. No, no she didn't. Ruby chose to leave instead of remaining by the side of the person who had sacrificed so much for her. Not even bothering to utter a goodbye before taking off.

Yang could feel the sting of tears gather at the corners of her eyes. "They left… again?" Her mind had gone blank as the words left her mouth. Once she received the confirmation, her hair exploded in a mass of flames and the red of her irises expanded to overcome her entire eyes.

Salem stood calmly watching the girl rage on her knees, angry screams, and yells of betrayal. That was the breaking point of her patience, it seems. At that moment, she was blinded by a five-course serving of rage that tasted bitter, yet surprisingly satisfying. Anger, pain, sadness - so intertwined that perhaps their names ought to be tweaked to reflect the true origins of those emotions.

Anger boiled deep in Yang's system, as hot as lava. It churned within, hungry for destruction, and Salem knew it to be too much for the girl to handle. The pressure of this raging sea of anger would force her to say things she did not mean, or to express thoughts she had suppressed for weeks. Salem knew that feeling all too well. She knew the best way to deal with it was to get out everyone's way before she erupts in her furious state. She knew that this feeling would pass, but while it has not, Salem was well aware Yang could really hurt people in her state, just as she'd planned. She would make a good henchman out of her.

When the anger finally melted away into sobs, Salem saw it fit to intervene. It was more than crying; it was the kind of desolate sobbing that comes from a person drained of all hope. Already on her knees, Yang's head sank to the floor where her fists grasped at the front of her jacket in a vain attempt of soothing the pain in her chest. She cried loud and hard, not caring for the filthy floor pressing on her forehead or dirtying her hair. The pain that flowed from her was as palpable was the frigid fall wind. She was noisy, her skin was blotched, but she didn't care, she cried until no more tears came, but still, the emptiness and sorrow remained.

"It's all over now." Yang heard and she believed.

Yang slowly emerged from the sad anger she possessed, and her sobs quieted. Having the anger dissipate in her felt nice, and she felt calmer than she had before, she felt free.

"You may rest for the night. Tomorrow, I shall have your answer." It was a statement, not a request. And Yang nodded tiredly, she wondered if her silent response was received from her low pose but seeing as Salem stepped away and proceeded to approach the door, Yang understood that it was. "You're given a choice not many people have the privilege of having, I suggest you think upon it well."

But did she really have a choice?

It took a while for Yang to register that her bindings were gone, yet she did not rise from her position instantly. She just sat there, thinking, wondering. Time passed but she didn't feel that it did, the curtains were open but there was no sun to rise in place of the moon.

She eventually stood to her feet, aware of the coldness beneath her feet for the first time since she had awakened. Now that her sensations were slowly settling, Yang started to notice a lot of things that she had apparently missed before.

Her vision was the first thing that drew her attention, the world was overwhelmingly desaturated. It was like all colors had been drained to the barest hint of hue and it made Yang very unsettled. Another thing was her appearance, Yang had found a tiny mirror in one of the drawers of a bedside table and her mind had still not registered that whoever was staring her back in the reflection was supposed to be her.

Eyes a deep bloody red and surrounded by a dark pool of black, skin pale and ashen, hair noticeably less wild and no longer a golden blonde. Yang opened her mouth to gasp and she took notice of the sharp teeth that poked out from under lips. Poking a finger into the corner of her mouth and pulling, Yang saw that it wasn't just her human canines that were noticeably sharper, but both rows of had a slightly pointier edge to them.

She sniffed, the aftermath of her crying fit was taking its toll on her body and making her feel sluggish and tired. Her eyes felt raw and she knew that they must look puffy as well.

Letting her head fall back on the headboard, Yang sat in silence. Thinking, wondering. What would she do now? Yang detested the thought of accepting the offer proposed to her but what would really happen to her if she were to refuse? She was obviously turned into this… monster for a reason. She doubted Salem would let her walk out if she were to say no. And even if it was by random chance she was allowed to leave, where would she go? How would she even leave? As far as she knew, the only way out of here was by airship and she doubted she would be dropped off somewhere.

Another point to consider also was, if she were to leave, would they simply let her walk out? Yang didn't even have shoes to wear much less a weapon to defend herself against the monsters outside. She sighed in exhaustion.

She was given a choice, but was she really?

All the odds were in favor of staying and obeying a creature of darkness, an immortal being that she very much doubted would be a nice and fair leader. And there were also the obvious nasty whispers that kept sneaking into her thoughts. Yang's head was throbbing lightly, a result of her overthinking and apparent stress. She regularly rubbed her temples, her forehead, and the back of her head while she thought, clenching her teeth so hard probably wasn't helping the situation.

She felt disgusted admitting it to herself, but she didn't want to go back to them either. They left. Yang didn't know in what circumstances they left in, she just knew that they did and she was left behind. As always. So, did she really want to leave? She knew that these people wouldn't care about her, but they wouldn't give her false hope and then shatter it before her eyes. It was a job to be here, nothing more, nothing less.

And Yang was sick of being the disposable one. And so, she would prove that she was more valuable than anyone ever thought she could be.

Not too long later, Yang's eyes fluttered closed and she drifted off to a dreamless sleep. Yet she couldn't get there, not quite yet. She was stuck in a continuous loop of moving towards sleep or moving towards wakefulness. She could barely see shapes and colors floating in her line of sight, her ears could hear the silent noises in the room and outside and she was vaguely aware of the passage of time as she felt the atmosphere change.

But she briefly saw a figure lying unconscious on the ground before she woke up. A body sprawled out, beaten, and weak right at her feet as she gazed down. Yang didn't have the time to make any sort of action, her eyes fluttered open for a second but it was enough for the vision to vanish completely.

**Author's Note:**

> This story is a continuation of a comic that I drew a while back and wanted to expand on without the struggle of lack of art skills and patience so it's now a fanfic! This is an experimental fic so I'd appreciate any feedback regarding whether I should continue writing for it or not.
> 
> The next chapter may be coming around next week so stay tuned!
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @FandomDojo for story updates or rwby theories and analysis. (I also have a linked art account @FandomDojo-illustrates where I drew concept art for Grimm Yang if you'd like to see that)
> 
> All my accounts are listed [here](https://linktr.ee/FandomDojo) in one place, otherwise you can find me @FandomDojo


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